Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
-1-
Title: PORTABLE WALL BOARD SYSTEM
AND METHOD FOR USING SAME
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a portable wall board system and
method for enclosing a sports playing area. It is particularly suitable for
use as a rink board enclosure for a roller hockey rink.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The recent popularity of in-line roller skates has spawned
many new sports, including roller hockey. Roller hockey is particularly
popular because it can be played in both warm and cold climates and thus
has a wider potential geographic appeal than ice hockey. Roller hockey can
be played on any flat, relatively smooth surface such as a parking lot or
other paved surface. The game is enhanced if an enclosure similar to ice
hockey rink boards encloses the rink.
One method of enclosing a roller hockey rink is to use
conventional ice hockey rink boards, known as dasher boards.
Conventional dasher boards, however, have the disadvantage of being
costly to obtain as well as time-consuming and difficult to install.
Furthermore, the materials used in the construction of conventional
dasher boards, typically wood and steel, are too heavy to make them
conveniently portable. Portability has become increasingly important over
the past few years with the advent of roller hockey tournaments that
travel from site to site. At the conclusion of such a tournament, which
typically lasts a day or a weekend, organizers pack up the tournament
equipment, including the rink board system, load it onto a truck and head
to a new location to conduct a similar tournament.
One known form of portable rink board system uses an
inflatable wall which encloses the rink. While having the advantage of
being portable when deflated, this type of system is expensive and requires
the use of electric inflating machines to assemble the system. Furthermore,
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the system is vulnerable to inadvertent leaks and punctures, necessitating
special care and maintenance. Also, the inflated walls of the system do not
adequately mimic the hardness of the walls of a conventional hockey rink.
This affects the flight of pucks or balls that deflect from the walls during
regular play.
Another form of portable rink board system is shown in U.S.
patent D349,738. This system incorporates vinyl-wrapped foam barriers
that are placed around the rink. This type of system, however, does not
accurately reproduce the shape or response of ice hockey dasher boards,
and therefore sacrifices performance for affordability and portability.
Accordingly, there is a need for a wall board system for roller
hockey rinks which is quick and easy to assemble, relatively inexpensive to
produce and which accurately reproduces the shape and deflection
response of conventional ice hockey dasher boards.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a system and method for
portably and inexpensively enclosing a sports playing surface, such as an
in-line hockey rink.
In a first aspect, the invention provides a wall board system
for enclosing an area, comprising:
a plurality of panels each having a front face and at least two
end faces;
a plurality of supports each having a front face and at least
two side faces, wherein said supports are generally hollow for receiving a
ballast material; and
means for interconnecting said end faces of said panels to said
side faces of said supports to align said panel front faces and said support
front faces to define a substantially continuous inner wall for enclosing
said area.
This aspect of the invention provides a lightweight portable
device which can be filled with water or other ballast to improve the
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support characteristics of the device.
In a second aspect, the invention provides a wall board
system for enclosing an area, comprising:
a plurality of panels each having a front face and at least two
end faces;
a plurality of supports each having a front face and at least
two side faces; and
a system for interconnecting keys and keyways integrally
formed on said panels and said supports to align said panel front faces and
said support front faces to define a substantially continuous inner wall for
enclosing an area.
In a third aspect, the invention provides a wall board system
for enclosing an area, comprising:
a plurality of panels each having a front face and at least two
end faces;
a plurality of supports each having a front face and at least
two side faces; and
means for interconnecting said end faces of said panels to said
side faces of said supports to align said panel front faces and said support
front faces to define a substantially continuous inner wall for enclosing
said area;
wherein said panels and said supports are each formed as a
single piece of molded plastic.
Advantageously, this aspect of the invention provides a
lightweight panel which is easily transportable.
In a fourth aspect, the invention provides a wall board system
for enclosing an area, comprising:
a plurality of panels each having a front face and at least two
end faces;
a plurality of supports each having a front face and at least
two side faces;
means for interconnecting said end faces of said panels to said
...~_...:.
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side faces of said supports to align said panel front faces and said support
front faces to define a substantially continuous inner wall for enclosing
said area; and
at least one door having a front face, first and second end
faces, and means for pivotally connecting said first end face of said door to
one of said supports along a vertical axis to align said door front face with
said panel front face and said support front face to define said continuous
inner wall.
In a fifth aspect, the invention provides a wall board
system for enclosing an area, comprising:
a plurality of panels each having a front face and at least two
end faces;
a plurality of supports each having a front face and at least
two side faces;
means for interconnecting said end faces of said panels to said
side faces of said supports to align said panel front faces and said support
front faces to define a substantially continuous inner wall for enclosing
said area; and
a shielding system having at least one shield and a plurality
of shield support means, said shield support means interconnecting with
said supports to define an upper wall that extends generally co-planar to
said continuous inner wall along at least a portion of the circumference of
said enclosed area.
In a sixth aspect, the invention provides for a support for a
wall panel comprising:
a hollow body having a base portion and a post portion, said
post portion being generally orthogonal to said base portion and having a
front face and at least two side faces;
a brace portion extending diagonally between said post
portion and said base portion; and
integral interconnection means located on said side faces of
said post portion for interconnecting with corresponding interconnection
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means on a wall panel;
wherein said hollow body is adapted to receive a ballast
material.
In a seventh aspect, the invention provides a support for a
5 wall panel comprising:
a hollow body having a base portion and a post portion, said
post portion being generally orthogonal to said base portion and having a
front face and at least two side faces; and
integral interconnection means located on said side faces of
said post portion for interconnecting with a wall panel, wherein said
interconnection means comprises upper and lower keyways that are
defined in said side faces adjacent each said post portion for receiving at
least two corresponding upper and lower keys on said wall panel;
wherein said hollow body is adapted to receive a ballast
material.
In an eighth aspect, the invention provides for a wall panel
for a wall board system comprising:
a monolithic panel having at least two end faces; and
integral interconnection means located on said end faces of
said panel for engaging corresponding interconnection means on a
support for said wall panel;
wherein said panel is formed as a single hollow piece of
molded plastic.
In a ninth aspect, the invention provides for a method for
enclosing an area with a modular wall board system comprising the
following steps:
determining the size of the desired area to be enclosed;
obtaining a plurality of panels each having a front face, a
plurality of supports and means for interconnecting said panels to said
supports to align said panel front faces;
interconnecting said panels and said supports with said
interconnection means to align said front faces of said panels to define a
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continuous inner wall for enclosing said area; and
inserting at least one door and at least one door brace between
a pair of supports for facilitating entry and exit from
said area.
Further aspects of the invention will appear from the
following description, taken together with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the present invention, and to
show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be
made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings. The drawings
show a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which:
Fig. 1 is an isometric view of a wall board system in
accordance with the present invention;
Fig. 2 is an isometric view of a straight panel for the wall
board system of Fig. 1;
Fig. 3 is an isometric view of a curved panel for the wall
board system of Fig. 1;
Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the panel of Fig. 2 taken along
lines 4-4;
Fig. 5 is a side view of stacks of both straight and curved
panels of Figs. 2 and 3 for storage or transportation;
Fig. 6 is an isometric view of a support for the wall board
system of Fig. 1;
Fig. 7 is a sectional view of the support of Fig. 6 taken along
lines 7-7;
Fig. 8 is an exploded isometric partial view of the connection
between the panel and the support of Figs. 2 and 6;
Fig. 9 is a plan view of interconnected panels and supports of
Figs. 3 and 6;
Fig. 10 is an exploded isometric view of an access door and
support for the wall board system of Fig. 1;
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Fig. 11 is a top view of a the access door of Fig. 10;
Fig. 12 is a left side perspective view of a support that has
been modified to receive the door of Fig. 10;
Fig. 13 is an isometric view of a door brace for the wall board
system of Fig. 1;
Fig. 14 is a front view of the access door and door brace of Figs.
and 13 installed between a pair of supports;
Fig. 15 is an exploded isometric view of a shielding system for
the wall board system of Fig. 1.
10 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to Fig. 1, a wall board system in accordance with the
present invention is indicated generally at 20. The system is depicted
enclosing a playing surface 22, in this case a roller hockey rink.
The wall board system 20 includes panels 24, supports 26,
doors 28 and a shielding system, indicated generally at 30. The shielding
system 30 includes shields 32 and shield support posts 34. The panels 24,
supports 26 and door 28 interconnect to define a continuous inner wall 36
that surrounds the playing surface 22 for the purpose of preventing a ball
or puck from leaving the playing surface 22. The playing surface 22 can be
any relatively flat, smooth, hard surface on which a roller skater may skate
such as an asphalt parking lot, or the like, or a specially-designed synthetic
surface may be used (such as is commercially available from Sport Court
Inc. of Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.A.).
The interconnected panels 24 smoothly and contiguously
encircle the playing surface 22 such that a ball or puck cannot become
lodged underneath a panel or between two adjacent panels 24, or
otherwise escape from the playing area except by exiting over the top of the
wall board system 20 or shielding system 30. In a preferred embodiment
two configurations of panels 24 are used: a straight type 24a and a curved
type 24b. The panel types 24a and 24b are preferably identical except that
type 24b curves inwardly at a fixed radius along its length. A fixed radius of
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between fourteen to sixteen feet is preferred if the enclosure system is to be
used with a playing area having a preferred roller hockey rink size (140 feet
by 65 feet, with 14 foot radius corners). This rink size is smaller than
standard ice hockey rinks but is preferred for roller hockey games where
four players (excluding the goalie) are playing for a team at one time.
Figs. 2 and 3 show typical panel types 24a and 24b,
respectively, each having a substantially smooth front playing face 38, a flat
back face 40, a flat top face 42, a flat bottom face 43 and a pair of end
faces 44.
An upper lip 46 extends perpendicular to the back face to provide
structural rigidity to the panel along its length. The playing face, when the
panel is adjacently interconnected to other panels 24, defines a portion of
the continuous inner wall 36. Regularly spaced along the underside of the
panel lip is a series of shield connection hooks 48, the structure and
function of which will be described below.
On each end face 44 of the panels 24 is a pair of panel
connection keys 50, the structure and function of which will be described
in more detail below. The panels 24 may also have a shallow rectangular
recess 52 on the front face, dimensioned to accept standard-sized
commercial bus advertisements. A rectangular piece of clear acrylic (not
shown), or other plastic is removably mounted flushly within the recess 52
to protectively cover the advertisement. The acrylic or plastic cover is
mounted preferably by several self-tapping countersunk screws or the like.
In a preferred embodiment, the panels 24 have a single-piece
construction and are composed of a suitable thermoplastic material, such
as low density polyethylene (LDPE), fabricated using rotational molding
techniques. Rotationally molding the panels 24 allows substantially
hollow panels 24 to be formed, preferably with a nominal wall thickness of
3/16 of an inch. This material and mode of fabrication is preferred to give
the panels 24 both a sturdy and lightweight construction. Also, damaged
panels 24 can be melted down and recycled as desired.
To improve the structural rigidity of the hollow panel and to
prevent the panel faces from warping, the front face and back face of the
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panel preferably have a plurality of regularly-spaced depressions or "kiss-
offs" 54 having bases 55, as shown in Fig. 4. The kiss-offs 54 are preferably
frustum-shaped, and are placed in opposing pairs on the playing face and
back face on each panel. In certain instances, the opposing bases 55 of the
opposing kiss-offs may meld together during manufacture. The bases 55 of
the paired kiss-offs 54 are adapted to contact one another through the
interior of the panel. By using kiss-offs 54 and an LDPE panel wall of 3/16"
thickness, a lightweight panel with sufficient structural rigidity is formed.
It has been found that this construction of panel responds to contact with a
vulcanized rubber puck or ball in a manner very similar to that of an ice
hockey dasher board system. That is, a puck or ball will generally bounce
off of the panels 24 of the present invention in a manner to which an
experienced ice hockey player will be accustomed.
Any suitable panel height may be chosen for the wall board
system 20, however a height of 4 feet is preferred if the wall board system
is to accurately mimic a conventional hockey dasher board system. T'he
length of both panel types 24a and 24b is preferably chosen to allow an
individual panel to be carried by two people, and more preferably by one
person. A panel length of 7 feet, excluding panel connection keys 50, is
20 preferred. This length also facilitates the transportability of panels 24
by
tractor-trailer or other desired means. Furthermore, the use of only two
standard panel types, 24a and 24b, allows the panels 24 to be compactly
stacked for storage or transportation, as shown in Fig. 5.
Referring to Figs. 6 and 7, a support 26 is shown. As shown in
Fig. 1, the supports 26 hold the panels 24 upright and in place in the wall
board system 20. The support 26 includes a connection post 56 that extends
vertically upward from a horizontal base 58. An integral brace 60 extends
diagonally between the top of the post and the rear of the base to enhance
the stability of the support 26. The support 26 is preferably substantially
hollow, with an interior cavity 62, shown in Fig. 7. In a preferred
embodiment the hollow, single-piece support 26 is made of rotationally-
molded LDPE.
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To provide ballast for supporting the assembled wall board
system 20, the support cavity may be filled with a ballast material,
preferably water, via an access port 64. The added ballast allows the support
26 to better anchor the panel against incidental player contact which may
5 occur during play. Prior to disassembly of the wall board system 20, the
ballast material may be drained from the cavity by means of a drain port
66, which is sealed with a releasable closure 68. If further ballast is
desired
an external ballast, such as a sand bag (not shown), may be placed on the
base portion of the support 26. Alternatively, the wall board system 20 may
10 be more permanently installed by anchoring the supports 26 to a subfloor
system or to the ground with appropriate anchor means such as clamps,
bolts, pins or concrete footings.
The support 26 has an inner face 70 that is preferably flat,
rectangular and substantially smooth. When the support 26 interconnects
with two adjacent panels 24, as will be described below, the inner face 70
forms a portion of the continuous inner wall 36 of the playing surface 22.
A pair of panel connection keyways 72, defined into each of the two side
faces of the support 26, are provided to mate with the panel connection
keys 50. A rectangular recess 74, running vertically up both side faces of the
connection post 56 portion of the support 26, provides access to the
keyways 72. The keyways 72 are offsettedly located in the recess, towards
the inner face 70 of the support 26.
A preferred mode of interconnection is shown in Fig. 8. The
panel connection key 50 has a shoulder portion 76, a neck portion 78 and a
head portion 80. The shoulder portion 76 is flat and perpendicular to
rectangularly prismatic faces 82 of the neck portion 78. The head portion 80
is substantially cylindrical in shape and aligned with its axis parallel to
the
long axis of the neck portion 78. The corresponding keyway 72 located on
the support 26 has a shoulder portion 84, a slot portion 86 and a locking
portion 88. The shoulder portion 84 is flat and perpendicular to the
parallel, flat, rectangular faces of the slot portion 86, and the locking
portion 88 is substantially cylindrical in shape. The neck portion 78 and
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head portion 80 of the key 50 are dimensioned to intimately, slidingly
mate respectively with the slot portion 86 and locking portion 88 of the
keyway 72 in a manner indicated in Fig. 8. A stop block 90, on the upper
edge of the lower key 50 of each panel end, prevents the lower key 50 from
sliding completely through its corresponding keyway 72. The stop block 90
ensures alignment between the top faces 42 of the interconnected panels 24
and supports 26, irrespective of the flatness of the terrain upon which the
wall board system 20 is being installed. It will be understood that different
corresponding configurations of the keys 50 and keyways 72 may be
selected as desired. For instance, the head portion 80 of the keys 50 could
have a triangular cross-sectional shape to mate with a corresponding
triangular cross-section locking portion 88 of a keyway 72.
Once the pair of keys 50 are slid as indicated into the
corresponding keyways 72, the panel is interconnected to the support 26, as
shown with a curved panel 24b in Fig. 9, and panel movement is
constrained both downwardly and transversely relative to the support.
Since panel types 24a and 24b have identical keys 50, either panel type may
be connected to a support 26. This interchangeability allows the wall board
system 20 to be adapted to almost any size or shape of playing surface 22. It
will be noted that the end faces 44 of the curved panel type 24b includes an
inwardly tapered portion 92 to allow a degree of angular movement
relative to the support 26 according to the overall radius of curvature
desired for the continuous inner wall 38 of the rink.
Referring again to Figs. 6 and 7, a pair of guide recesses 94 are
also defined in opposing pairs on each of the two side faces of the support
26. The guide recesses 94 serve to guide and anchor the shield support
posts 34. As shown in Fig. 7, the guide recesses 94 each have a convex
cylindrical bottom surface 96, the fixed inner radius of which is preferably
equivalent to or slightly larger than the radius of the support access port
64. The guide recesses 94 are positioned on the connection post 56 such
that the convex surface of each guide recess is concentric with the access
port 64. As will be described below, this alignment allows a cylindrical
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shield support post to be vertically held by the support 26 by inserting the
post through the access port 64, into the interior of the support cavity and
then sliding the post between the opposing pairs of guide recesses 94 until
the base of the post rests against the interior floor of the base portion of
the
support 26. The structure, function and installation of the shield support
posts 34 will be discussed in more detail below.
Fig. 10 shows a preferred embodiment of the door 28 for
allowing a player to enter and exit the playing surface 22. The door 28 has a
flat, substantially smooth door face 98, a flat back face 100, flat sides 102,
a
door lip 104 and a hinge arm 106 having upper and lower hinge pins 108.
The door 28 is designed to open outwardly, away from the playing area. As
with the panel and support elements, the door 28 is preferably composed
of rotationally molded LDPE so that the door element is substantially
hollow with nominal wall thickness of 3/16 of an inch.
When the door 28 has been installed, as will be described
below, and closed, the door face 98 forms a portion of the continuous inner
wall 36 of the rink. The door face 98 and back face have a plurality of
opposing kiss-offs, as shown in Figures 10 and 11, to improve the door's
structural rigidity and prevent the faces from warping similar to the kiss-
offs 54 used in the panel elements. The door lip 104 extends along the
length of the door's bottom face to prevent the door 28 from swinging
inwardly into the playing area.
The hinge arm 106 has a 90-degree elbow 110, as shown in Fig.
11, which holds the hinge pins 108 out of the plane of the door 28. The
vertical height of the hinge arm 106, excluding the hinge pins 108, is
approximately equal to but not greater than the height of the support
recess. The portion of the hinge arm 106 outside of the elbow 110 has a
width less than the width of the support recess 74. The hinge arm 106 is
sized in this manner so that it fits within the support recess 74 when the
door 28 is in the closed position, as shown in Fig. 14. The elbowed shape of
the hinge arm 106 allows the door 28, once it has been installed as
described below, to swing closed such that the door face 98 is flush with the
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inner faces 70 of adjacent supports 26. The cylindrical hinge pins 108 are
concentrically located on the top and bottom ends of the hinge arm 106.
The door 28 is semi-permanently installed in a specially
modified support 26 as shown in Fig. 12. A support 26 is modified by
cutting a circular hole 112 in top and bottom faces 114 and 116 of one of the
vertical recesses on the support 26. The holes are sized to allow the hinge
pins 108 to snugly enter therein and are located adjacent the keyways 72.
The door 28 is installed in the support 26 by locating the lower hinge pin
in the lower hole and rotating the door 28 thereabout until the upper pin
has been forced-fitted into the upper hole. To facilitate this forced-fit
installation of the door 28, the height of the hinge pins 108 is preferably no
greater than about 1 /2 inch.
An under-door brace 118 is shown in Fig. 13 for connecting to
the lower keyways 72 of the two supports 26 which define the doorway
shown in Fig. 14. The brace fixes the distance between the supports 26 and
stabilizes the size and shape of the doorway, which enables the door 28 to
freely and fully close between the supports 26. The under-door brace 118
has a substantially smooth front face 120, a back face 122, a flat bottom face
124, a brace lip 126 running along the length of the upper face, and a
connection key 128 located on either end. The brace lip 126 and door lip 104
together prevent the door 28 from swinging into the playing area. The
brace lip 126 and door lip 104 are dimensioned to mate and are disposed
against each other when the door 28 is in the closed position, the door face
98 being flush with the adjacent support faces.
The connection key 128 of the under-door brace is identical to
the panel connection key 128 in all aspects of shape and dimension except
height. The height of the brace keys 50 is the same as the nominal height
of the brace. The brace height is sized so that it extends from the ground to
the bottom face of the door 28.
A door locking mechanism 130 is shown in Fig. 10 for locking
the door 28 in the closed position. The mechanism preferably comprises an
arm 132, having a pivot 134, a guide 136, a handle 138, a catch 140 and a
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catch slot 142. It will be recognized that many other configurations of door
28 locking mechanism 130 would also be effective. The arm 132 is pinned
to the back face 122 of the door 28 at one end and freely slidably held by the
guide 136 part-way along its length, and is positioned on the door 28 such
that the free end of the arm 132 extends outwardly sideways of the door 28.
The guide 136 restricts the range of motion of the pinned arm 132. The
catch is mounted on the inner front face 120 of the support recess so that it
may engage and hold the free end of the arm 132. To close the mechanism,
the arm 132 is lifted by the handle 138 and the door 28 is closed until the
arm 132 is located over the catch slot 142. The handle 138 is then released
and the arm 132 falls into, and is held by, the catch slot 142. To open the
mechanism, the arm 132 is lifted out of the catch slot 142, using the handle
138, and the door 28 is swung open and the handle 138 released.
The door 28 may also be biased to automatically close after
being opened. Although it will be readily recognized that the door 28 may
be biased in any number of ways, a preferred method of biasing the door 28
is through the use of a torsion spring 144, as shown in Fig. 14. The torsion
spring 144 may be inserted into the door 28 with one arm 146 of the spring
left to bear against the interior of the door panel. The other arm 148 of the
spring protrudes from the door 28 and may be positioned to bear against
the interior of the support recess.
As discussed above, the wall board system 20 may be provided
with a shielding system 30, as shown in Figs. 1 and 15, to protect spectators
from the ball or puck and to generally keep the ball or puck in play. A
preferred material for the shield is commercially available knotted-rope
netting having top and bottom nylon tape trim 150. It will be readily
recognized that any number of other materials may be used for the shield,
such as sheets of plate acrylic or plastic fitted to corresponding grooves in
the support posts.
As shown in Fig. 15, the shield may be supported by shield
support posts 34, which are affixed to the supports 26 and rise upwardly
therefrom. Although the shield support posts 34 may be constructed in any
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number of manners, the use of commercially available acrylonitrile-
butadiene-styrene (ABS) plumbing piping is preferred where rope netting
is the shielding material. In a preferred embodiment, the shield support
posts 34 are vertically supported by the supports 26. The posts preferably
5 have an outside diameter which allows a post to matingly fit through the
access port 64 in the support 26 into the interior of the support cavity. Once
inside the cavity, the posts are slid down through the two pairs of guide
recesses 94 in the support 26, until the base of the shield support post rests
against the interior floor of the base portion of the support 26. When
10 inserted in this manner, the guide recesses 94 anchor the shield support
post. Since the shield support posts 34 are located in the access port 64 of
the support 26, it will be apparent that if the addition of a liquid ballast
is
desired, the support 26 must be filled with the ballast prior to the insertion
of the shield support posts 34.
15 The netting may be attached to the shield support posts 34 in
any number of ways. A preferred method is attaching a continuous piece
of netting to the support posts by feeding a guidewire 152 through
regularly-spaced grommets 154 along the top trim of the net and
supporting the guidewire 152 through a hole 156 made through each
support post. It will be apparent that the guidewire 152 will have to be fed
through the net grommets 154 and support posts in an appropriate
sequence. The guidewire 152 is fixed to the first post 158 (see Fig. 1) in a
length of shielded area, and fixed to a small hand winch (not shown), or
the like, at a last post 160. When the net and posts have been properly
threaded with the guidewire 152, the winch is tightened to provide an
appropriate tension to the guidewire 152.
In another preferred method of attaching netting to the
support posts, several netting elements, each having the length of one
panel element, are used. The net elements would include a side trim and
would be secured on each end to a shield support post in an appropriate
manner.
It is preferred that netting also be attached at its lower end to
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the panel lip to prevent the ball or puck from escaping between the
interface of the netting and panels 24. This attachment may be made by
securing the netting to a series of hooks which have been affixed to the
underside of the panel lip at regular intervals along the panel lip's length.
A rope or cable 162 may be fed through regularly-spaced grommet holes
164 along the lower edge of the net and secured to the hooks in a stitch-like
manner by the rope or cable 162.
In a preferred embodiment, the shield support posts 34 are
ten feet in length such that, when used with panels 24 four feet in height,
the posts extend six feet above the top edge of the interconnected panels 24.
The hole 156 in the shield support post through which the net supporting
guidewire 152 is fed is located two feet from the top of the post, being four
feet above the height of the top of the interconnected panels 24. This
results in a netting shield extending four feet above the height of the
interconnected panels 24, and leaves an exposed portion of the support
posts extending two feet above the netting shield. The top portion of each
post may be used as a flag standard (as shown in Fig. 1), a support 26 for
artificial lighting to light the playing area, mount for a commercial
advertisement or any other desired purpose.
The method of assembling the wall board system 20 is as
follows. A desired size of playing area is selected and panels 24 are laid out
around the playing area in the appropriate sequence so that the playing
area will be defined in the desired shape. For instance, for a 140 foot by 65
foot playing surface a total of fifty-four panels (that are seven feet in
length) are used. Each corner for such a rink uses three curved panels 24b
thus requiring twelve curved panels 24b and forty-two straight panels 24a
to form the rink. The length of the rink would vary of course according to
the number of doors 28 added. A support 26 is also set at the intended place
of each interconnection between panels 24. A first panel is connected to a
first support 26 by lifting the panel, lining the panel keys 50 up with the
support keyways 72 and sliding the panels 24 fully downwardly in to the
keyway 72. The first panel is then connected at its other end to a second
3
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support 26 in a similar manner. A second panel is then connected to the
second support 26 and a third support 26, as described, and the process is
repeated until the last panel is connected to the first support 26, and the
interconnected panels 24 and supports 26 contiguously define the playing
area. If one or more doors 28 are to be included in the wall board system 20,
then the doors 28 are inserted at the appropriate places, in lieu of the
insertion of a panel.
Once the panels 24, supports 26 and doors 28 have been
interconnected, ballast may be added to the system by filling the supports
26 with water and positioning external ballasts as described above. If a
shielding system 30 is desired, the shield support posts 34 may then be
inserted into the supports 26 in the manner previously described. The
guidewire 152 is then fed through the netting and shield support posts 34
and the guidewire 152 is tightened. Once the posts and netting have been
erected, the netting may be tied to the net hooks in the manner described
above.
It is to be understood that what has been described is a
preferred embodiment of the invention. The invention is nonetheless
susceptible to certain changes and alternative embodiments fully
comprehended by the spirit of the invention as described above, and the
scope of the claims set out below.
